Treatment and Diagnosis of Mud Fever and
Cracked Heels in Horses

Mud fever is a form of dermatitis or skin infection affecting
horses which is caused by a micro-organism called Dermatophilous Congolensis
which thrives in wet and muddy conditions.

Cracked Heels
more commonly refers to the condition where it affects the hollow of the
pastern.

This form of equine dermatitis is caused when the bacterium penetrates
the skin either through a wound or as a result of the horses skin becoming
softened due to mud or persistant moisture and dampness on the horse's
skin.

Mud Fever/Cracked heels is characterised by scabs forming
on the horse's legs that may have swelling in the area surrounding the
scabs.

The crusty scabs caused by mud fever stick to clumps or tufts of hair
- when they are removed the matted hairs come with them.

The skin under these clumps of hair is often inflamed and oozing serum.

Mud fever can cause swelling in the pastern area of the leg and the
horse or pony may be lame.

It is possible that the mud fever can also lead to more serious infection
such as equine cellulitis which can be extremely painful
for a horse or pony.

Treatment of
Mud Fever

If your horse or pony has a severe case of mud
fever - i.e. He has very swollen legs or is lame
you should seek advice from your veterinary surgeon who
may prescribe Antibiotics and/or Corticosteriod ointments
nad possibly an anti-inflammatory such as bute to reduce
the pain.

Remove the horse from wet muddy field conditions.

Remove any matted crusts from the affected areas.

Soaking the crusts or scabs in warm soapy water will soften
them and make the procedure much less painful for the horse.

When the crusts and scabs have been removed the affected
skin should be treated with an anti-bacterial solution ,
such as PevidineHibiscrub,
and then left for 5 to 10 minutes.

The treated area should then be rinsed then dried with
a dry clean towel.

A good method of drying the wounds and and outer skin is
to apply "rubbing alcohol" or "surgical spirits".

Ethanol is also effective and is less of an irritant and
also has antibacterial properties.

Apply an antibacterial ointment together and also a moisture
repelling product such as vaseleine or baby oil.

An Equine Corticosteriod ointment may
also be applied - get this from your vet.

It is important, in addition to cleaning thoroughly, not
to cover the affected areas with ointments, etc. until the
water is forced out. Otherwise the bacteria can thrive beneath
in the damp conditions locked in by the ointments or creams.

Prevention of Mud Fever and Cracked Heels

The bacterium Dermatophilous Congolensis is a natural
inhabitant of horse's skin.

Wet grass and muddy conditions provide the damp enviroment
which cause an infection, therefore its almost impossible
to completely prevent a horse from getting Mud
Fever.

However taking preventative measures can reduce the
chances of a horse getting infected with Mud Fever and
reduce the severity of the symptoms.

Always make sure that the horse's pasterns and
heels are cleaned thoroughly and dried after
exercise.

Clip any long hair and feathers but avoid clipping all
of the horse's legs.

A good preventative remedy to try is to spray the legs
, especially the back of the pasterns, with a half and
half mixture of vinegar and baby oil after washing and
drying drying.

The baby oil moisturises the skin and prevents it from
cracking, the acidic vinegar changes the pH value of the
skin just enough to make conditions on the skin unfriendly
for the bacteria to grow.

Preparations like tea-tree oil and emu oil also have
mild antiseptic properties and can also be used to try
to prevent and treat Mud Fever.

Use a feed supplement with a formula of herbs that help
improve skin condition.